Thinking About Teaching and Learning: Developing Habits of Learning with First Year College and University Students

by Robert N. Leamnson

Here is a compelling read for every teacher in higher education who wants to refresh or reexamine his or her classroom practice.Building on the insights offered by recent discoveries about the biological basis of learning, and on his own thought-provoking definitions of teaching, learning and education, the author proceeds to the practical details of instruction that teachers are most interested in--the things that make or break teaching.Practical and thoughtful, and based on forty years of teaching, wide reading and much reflection, Robert Leamnson provides teachers with a map to develop their own teaching philosophy, and effective nuts-and-bolts advice.His approach is particularly useful for those facing a cohort of first year students less prepared for college and university. He is concerned to develop in his students habits and skills that will equip them for a lifetime of learning. He is especially alert to the psychology of students. He also understands, and has experienced, the typical frustration and exasperation teachers feel when students ingeniously elude their teachers’ loftiest goals and strategies. Most important, he has good advice about how to cope with the challenge. This guide will appeal to college teachers in all disciplines.

Genres: Education, Teaching, Nonfiction

256 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 1999

About the author

Dr. Robert N. Leamnson was Professor of Biology and Director of Multidisciplinary Studies at University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth.

Reviews

[Kevin Labe]

Language use as a key characteristic of and path to learning.

[Bill Guinee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book for a workshop that I will be taking this summer, and it is clearly one of the best books I have ever read about teaching at the college level. Leamnson does a great job of grounding his ideas about teaching in current knowledge about the way the brain functions. He is masterful at moving from helping the reader to understand the brain and then translating that into specific and doable teaching techniques. The premise is a bit scary at first -- that incoming college students often really don't have the ability to think in the ways that we want them to think. He then takes these basic insights and discusses how we can teach them to really think. Of course, this implies a significant committment to intellectual process rather than to teaching content.
The only real downside to this work is that it is now about 10 years old. I would like updates on what we have learned about he brain, the characteristics of incoming college students, and particularly on the use of digital technologies (he is still quite impressed with email at the time of the writing). Still, this is not a book to be missed by anyone who wishes to have an impact on college students learning.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this on the plane coming back to teach and it got me excited about teaching undergraduates again. I took a whole page of teeny-tiny notes of what I wanted to do with my class: show up at their games and recitals (139), share student writing in class (126), present class in terms of the overall goals and realities of the students (56), require students to apply knowledge to hypothetical situations (110), and be unafraid of enthusiasm and personal charisma in the classroom (75). This last one is especially interesting to me as it catches that line between teacher ethos and departmental standards that I think is so important. Despite the now-outdated discussion of technology and (giant eyeroll) learning styles, this is probably the book that I will require new graduate instructors to read. It emphasizes that teaching freshman is radically different from teaching upperclassmen, in both the psychological and physiological state of the novices. A must.

[Karyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quite possibly the best book I've ever read about teaching. Leamnson defines the goal of teaching as biological: changing students brains. He presents an insightful discussion of why first-year students (naturally) resist this change, and what we can do as teachers to elicit better learning behaviors from our beginning students. Also, he's a biology professor who values writing--he sees writing as a tool that can both help students learn and help teachers to evaluate what students learn. An outstanding read full of great ideas.

[Beverly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book on Karyn's recommendation, and I'm glad I did. Leamnson offers excellent advice for creating opportunities to use the machinations of our brains to help students develop their abilities to be effective learners. The age of the text (my edition is from 1999) meant that the chapter on technology is out-of-date and a bit quaint, but the thesis of the chapter transcends the author's pleasure in the usefulness of "e-mail". This book energized me and as I prepare for the first week of a new semester, I'm grateful to have new ideas for my teaching and classroom.

[BeckyT · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an extremely helpful book about teaching. As a biologist, Leamnson examines the scientific basis for how students learn, and gives practical ideas for how to facilitate the hard, uncomfortable work of learning. The only drawback was that this book was a bit repetitive-- perhaps meant for someone to pick up isolated chapters here and there.

[Wayne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Leamnson, to me seemed a little more harsh than necessary on first year college students, yet he does display a desire to help them. He also constantly refers to language as the key to learning. It's only learned if we can speak or write it.

[Jocelyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Leamnson presents some helpful ideas about first-year students -- how (for many) school occupies a separate compartment from real life, and their communication skills limit their ability to focus a conversation on a subject of interest.